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The Florida Senate

2006 Florida Statutes

SECTION 674
Clinical eligibility for publicly funded substance abuse and mental health services; fee collection requirements.
Section 394.674, Florida Statutes 2006

394.674  Clinical eligibility for publicly funded substance abuse and mental health services; fee collection requirements.--

(1)  To be eligible to receive substance abuse and mental health services funded by the department, a person must be a member of one of the department's target groups approved by the Legislature, pursuant to 1s. 216.0166

(2)  Crisis services, as defined in s. 394.67, must, within the limitations of available state and local matching resources, be available to each person who is eligible for services under subsection (1), regardless of the person's ability to pay for such services. A person who is experiencing a mental health crisis and who does not meet the criteria for involuntary examination under s. 394.463(1), or a person who is experiencing a substance abuse crisis and who does not meet the involuntary admission criteria in s. 397.675, must contribute to the cost of his or her care and treatment pursuant to the sliding fee scale developed under subsection (4), unless charging a fee is contraindicated because of the crisis situation.

(3)  Mental health services, substance abuse services, and crisis services, as defined in s. 394.67, must, within the limitations of available state and local matching resources, be available to each person who is eligible for services under subsection (1). Such person must contribute to the cost of his or her care and treatment pursuant to the sliding fee scale developed under subsection (4).

(4)  The department shall adopt rules to implement the clinical eligibility and fee collection requirements for publicly funded substance abuse and mental health services. The rules must require that each provider under contract with the department develop a sliding fee scale for persons who have a net family income at or above 150 percent of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines, unless otherwise required by state or federal law. The sliding fee scale must use the uniform schedule of discounts by which a provider under contract with the department discounts its established client charges for services supported with state, federal, or local funds, using, at a minimum, factors such as family income, financial assets, and family size as declared by the person or the person's guardian. The rules must include uniform criteria to be used by all service providers in developing the schedule of discounts for the sliding fee scale. The rules must address the most expensive types of treatment, such as residential and inpatient treatment, in order to make it possible for a client to responsibly contribute to his or her mental health or substance abuse care without jeopardizing the family's financial stability. A person who is not eligible for Medicaid and whose net family income is less than 150 percent of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines must pay a portion of his or her treatment costs which is comparable to the copayment amount required by the Medicaid program for Medicaid clients pursuant to s. 409.9081 The rules must require that persons who receive financial assistance from the Federal Government because of a disability and are in long-term residential treatment settings contribute to their board and care costs and treatment costs and must be consistent with the provisions in s. 409.212

(5)  A person who meets the eligibility criteria in subsection (1) shall be served in accordance with the appropriate district substance abuse and mental health services plan specified in s. 394.75 and within available resources.

History.--s. 7, ch. 2000-349.

1Note.--Repealed by s. 61, ch. 2000-371.